I am looking to buy a small dozer like a Deere 450 or Komatsu D31. I was wondering if any one has one or knows anything about them. I am looking for the biggest dozer i can still pull with a ton truck.

Mdirrigation

06-28-2004, 07:00 PM

Pulling a dozer is possible with a 1 ton truck , stopping is the fun part . By the time you buy a goosneck trailer , ( the rear hitch wont handle the weight) and set the truck up , you will have a truck thats strained to the max to do the job.

hlgmoney

06-28-2004, 10:38 PM

An F250 or F350 with a ten ton goose neck will let you move around something like a D3, I think, maybe? As said earlier, it's stopping and turning that will be the fun part.

DKinWA

06-29-2004, 12:50 AM

A 450 will run you at least 16K pounds and most likely another ton if it's got a cab and a ripper or winch on the back end. By the time you add roughly 4.5K for the trailer, you'll be well over 20K pounds. I checked out Fords website and the highest Gross Combined Weight Rating for a 350 is 20K pounds. If you add the machine, trailer and truck, you'll gross about 25K pounds which is well over the limit.

Crossing the state scales here in washington loaded like this would net you a ticket and lengthy lecture. Then to top it off, the officer wouldn't let you put it back on the highway until you had a suitable vehicle to pull it. If you really want to pull a machine this size, I'd look for a different tow vehicle. I know there are folks that will say it's no problem, but I've seen plenty of rigs like this laying in a ditch on the side of the road. The last one in a ditch was a 580 case backhoe being towed by a pickup. The trailer, truck and backhoe all parted company and it made for a ugly mess.

Canon Landscaping

06-29-2004, 05:24 PM

I am looking at an ford f550 to pull it with I currently have a duramax and I have seen people pull 450s around but I agree the truck would be maxed out. I am trying to stay away from a semi I have a D-41ex Komatsu and get a local trucking company to haul it from job to job. I am thinking about selling it and getting something smaller. I know komatsu is a great machine I love mine I have used a Deere 450g and it was a good machine. I have never run a Cat and I was wanting some information from some one with experience with one.

Tigerotor77W

06-29-2004, 11:29 PM

As far as dozing goes... you really can't go wrong with any of them. I'm a Cat fan and love Cat, but in all seriousness, I have heard a ****load of GREAT stuff about Deere. They've begun to kick some major ass lately, and even though Cat has a great lineup (G series dozers) out, I'm not sure if they can outdo the Deeres. Who knows -- try one out and see what happens.

Komatsus are great machines as well. Always have been. I'm not as big a fan of them, but you can try out their second generation hystats.

I still go Cat though. :-)

DKinWA

06-30-2004, 03:28 AM

The 550 is a much better idea than the one ton :D All three are good machines and it really is "6 in one hand and half a dozen the other". I tend to go the cat route with equipment, but it's more of a dealer issue since they're closer and treat me well. The new H-series JD is a nice machine and I've heard lots of good things from a friend that has a 650H. At first it wouldn't push a shovel full of dirt, but a quick computer change and now it'll push mountains. All things being equal (price and dealer), I don't know which one I'd buy and I'd probably have to resort to flipping a coin.

Mdirrigation

07-01-2004, 09:22 AM

You dont need a semi, just a dump truck and trailer. You will need a CDL , even with the ford 550 once the trailer goes over 10.000 lbs. Go to the motor vehicles and get the info on when a cdl is required to verify for yourself.

coopers

07-02-2004, 11:03 PM

We have the 450H's and wow those are seriously nice machines. Hydrostatic controls. Very nice machines. Run great, only problems we get with them is after a careless customer uses it. Great machines, they do weigh a lot though!

Blake
WA

iceberg210

07-06-2004, 02:42 AM

I've never actually driven the Deere but although I'm a Deer fan when it comes to dozers I'd go Cat. The D3 is an amazing machine with plenty of power and usefulness. The one I've driven is a D3C and it is one heck of a machine. I say go Cat.

allaccesslandscaping

07-26-2004, 11:06 AM

I think you should get a skid steer with a dozer blade. You get more for your money. U might have to get the bobcat t300 or ASV100.

Those machines have a lot of hp.. I was reading in some catlog how a company traded in all their big stuff and went with a skid steer line up save a lot of money plus they were able to use the skid steer on other projects.

You might have to run the dozer blade a couple of more times up and down but its worth it. I think the catlog was bobcat worksaver. Check uot there website. Cat also makes a 278b machines. THATS BAD AZZ